Mounting for the rings of a ring rail

ABSTRACT

THE HOLDER IS FORMED WITH A RECESS OF EXACTLY CIRCULAR SHAPE AND THE RING FITS INTO THE RECESS WITH A SLIDING FIT. THE CLAMPING PLATES OVERLIE THE RING AND HOLD THE RING IN PLACE AGAINST REMOVAL. THE HOLDER IS ADJUSTABLY MOUNTED IN THE RING RAIL SO AS TO PERMIT CENTERING OF THE RING.

March 9, 1971 wfi 3,568,427

MOUNTING FOR THE RINGS OF A RING RAIL Filed Dec. 9, 1968 INVENIOR. ARTHUR U/URML- I United States Patent 3,568,427 MOUNTING FOR THE RINGS OF A RING RAIL Arthur Wurmli, Wlnterthur, Switzerland, assignor to Rieter Machine Works, Ltd., Winterthur, Switzerland Filed Dec. 9, 1968, Ser. No. 782,039 Claims priority, application Switzerland, Dec. 13, 1967, 17,504/ 67 Int. Cl. Dh 7/64 US. Cl. 57-122 4 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE The holder is formed with a recess of exactly circular shape and the ring fits into the recess with a sliding fit. The clamping plates overlie the ring and hold the ring in place against removal. The holder is adjustably mounted in the ring rail so as to permit centering of the ring.

This invention relates to a mounting for the rings of a ring rail of spinning and twisting machines. More particularly, this invention relates to a ring holder for mounting rings on a ring rail.

Heretofore, it has been known to mount a ring directly on a ring rail or in a holder which is placed on and fastened to the ring rail. This has required the roundness of the ring to be unimpaired while also requiring an ease of removal of the ring for exchange purposes. Further, it has been desirable to have the ring centered easily with respect to the spindle utilized with the ring rail.

In order to satisfy these above requirements, it has been proposed to mount a ring directly on a ring rail. In some instances, the ring has been mounted on a ring rail made from thin steel plate and has been secured in place, for example, by means of screws provided with large heads or by means of plates screwed onto the ring rail and inserted over projecting parts of the'ring above the ring rail or into grooves milled into other parts of the ring. However, these mountings have required a compact ring profile with additional projections. Also, the exchange or replacement of the rings has been complicated. In other instances, a ring having a mounting flange and a tapered extension of the ring below the mounting flange has been mounted directly on the ring rail and centered by a screw in the bore of the ring rail. This screw has been disposed to press against the circumference of the ring rail. However, in this structure, the danger of undesirable ring deformation persists.

It has also been proposed to use ring holders which are mounted on and attached to a ring rail in which the rings have been inserted. In this instance, the rings have been inserted into a recess at the edge of the ring holder and have been fixed by a radial clamping action of the ring holder which has been made elastic with respect to the ring. However, due to the tight fit of the ring holder in the ring rail, centering of the ring has not been possible while the ring has also been deformed by the radial clamping action.

In order to provide for centering of a ring, a ring holder in which a ring is received within a recess in the holder has been inserted through, while clearing, a ring rail opening from underneath and is fixed on the ring rail by means of a ring screwed on from above. This holder has been constructed, for example, as a slotted holding ring, to act as a clamping device holding the ring in place by spring action. However, due to the slotted shape of the holder, the maintenance of the roundness of the spinning ring has become questionable. Further, such structures with many projections also induce the formation of fly waste and dust accumulations.

Other arrangements in which a ring can be centered 3,568,427 Patented Mar. 9, 1971 have included an intermediate disc which is adjustable in the ring rail plane and is pressed against the lower edge of the ring rail opening by a tension spring. Exchanging of the ring, however, is complicated as the holding devices has been located at the ring rail underside. In another device, the ring has been held by three clamping prongs arranged on a metal ring surrounding the spinning ring, the metal ring being adjustable in the plane of the ring rail for centering and the prongs taking hold above a flange-shaped bottom edge of the spinning ring. The three-point pressure contact, however, complicates ring changes and fly waste and dust easily accumulate on the protruding prongs. Furthermore, a holder for spinning and twisting rings that can be centered has been known in which the ring has been adjusted in the ring rail opening after a fastening screw connecting a cover ring above the ring rail and clamping prongs below the ring rail have been loosened. However, in order to exchange the ring, the whole holding device must be taken ofl.

The rigidity of the ring holders in these heretofore holding devices has thus far been insuflicient as the holder has either been too flexible compared to the ring or has exerted a pressure on the ring. The rings mounted in such holders which deviate from a perfect circular shape not only maintain their deviations from the circular shape but also their roundness is further impaired by deformation.

Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to permit the use of rings of simple design.

It is another object of the invention to permit an easy exchange of rings in a ring rail.

It is another object of the invention to provide a simple centering operation for the rings of a ring rail.

It is another object of the invention to ensure the maintenance of the roundness of a ring.

Briefly, the invention provides a ring holder which is adapted for mounting on the ring rail of a spinning or twisting machine with an exactly circular recess at the periphery for receiving a ring in a sliding fit relation. Further, the ring holder is constructed so as to be rigid in comparison to the ring in order to maintain a perfect roundness of the ring.

The ring holder is also constructed so as to be centered on and secured to a ring rail in which the ring is maintained in place by suitable removable means.

These and other objects and advantages of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description and appended claims taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 illustrates a view taken on line I-I of FIG. 2 of a ring mounted within a ring holder of the invention and a ring rail;

FIG. 2 illustrates a top view of the ring, ring holder and ring rail of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 3 illustrates a cross-sectional view of the ring of FIG. 2.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 3, a ring 1 having a substantially uniform inside diameter b is provided with a T- shaped top flange 2 as is known and a bottom flange 3 which extends radially outwardly and has a greater outside diameter than the outside diameter of the T-shaped top flange 2. In addition, the bottom flange 3 is of a substantially uniform thickness or height 11.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a ring holder 4 which has a circular central opening 5 of the same diameter a as the inside diameter b of the ring 1 and a circular recess 11 in the upper surface about the periphery receives the ring 1 within the recess 11 in a sliding fit relation. The recess 11 has an inside diameter equal to the diameter a of the central opening 5 and an outside diameter equal to the outside diameter b of the bottom flange 3 of the ring 1 and a slight clearance for a sliding fit of the ring 1. The recess 11 is also of a depth equal to the height of the bottom flange 3 of the ring 1.

The ring holder 4 also has a collar 6 surrounding the opening and a rim 7 which extends outwardly at a right angle from the upper end of the collar 6. The rim 7 is enlarged into two lappets 8 which are disposed symmetrically on opposite sides of the ring holder 4 and which are each provided with holes 10 having countersunk recesses 9. Each lappet 8 is also provided with a recess 12 of generally U-shape which extends from the outer edge of the ring receiving recess 11 to a peripheral upstanding rim 14 of the holder 4. The recesses 12 are each sized to receive a clamping plate 13, preferably a spring plate or a pretensioned plate, and are of a height such that the plates 13 do not project out of the recesses 12. The peripheral rim 14 is also of a height such that the plates 13 and walls of the recesses 12 do not project past the rim 14.

In use, the ring 1 is inserted into the ring holder 4 by placing the bottom flange 3 in the circular recess 11. Thereafter, the clamping plates 13 are placed into the recesses 12 of the lappets 8 in overlying relation to the bottom flange 3 of the ring 1. Screws 15 are then inserted through suitable holes in the plates 13 and threaded into the holes 10 of the lappets 8. As the bottom flange 3 is of the same height as the recess 11, the plates 13 rest evenly on the upper surface of the ring flange 3 to securely hold the ring 1 in the recess 11 when the screws 15 are tightened. Upon loosening of the screws 15 and the clamping plates 13, the ring 1 is readily accessible for exchange.

In order to mount the ring holder 4 on a ring rail 16, the collar 6 of the ring holder 4 is inserted into an opening 17 in the ring rail 16. The ring holder 4 is then connected to the ring rail 16 by passing the screws 15 through aligned holes 18 in the ring rail 16 and threading suitable rounded nuts or threaded plates 19 onto the screws 15. Preferably, the opening 17 is larger than the outside diameter of the collar 6 of the ring holder 4 and the holes 18 are larger than the screws 15. With these clearances, the ring 1 can be centered with respect to a spindle (not shown) positioned in the center of the opening 17 by laterally shifting the ring holder 4 in the plane of the ring rail after loosening of the screws 15.

The ring holder 4, which can be made of a different material than the ring 1, is considerably more rigid than the ring 1. Further, the 'wall 20 of the circular recess 11 is more exactly round than the bottom flange 3 of the ring 1. Thus, insertion of a ring which deviates from a perfectly circular shape into the circular recess 11 causes a slight pressure on the ring so that the roundness of the ring automatically adapts to the roundness of the wall 20'. Perfect roundness of the ring 1 in use is thus achieved.

The invention thus provides a ring holder which is ca- 4 pable of mounting a ring in a spinning or twisting machine about a spindle while maintaining a perfect roundness of the ring. In addition, the moutning of the ring holder on the ring rail of the machine permits the ring to be centered with respect to the spindle which passes through thering.

The ring holder further permits the ring to be replaced in an easy and rapid manner through means of simple manipulative steps without removal of the ring holder.

It is noted that the slide fit of the ring in the ring holder avoids any radial pressure on the ring which might otherwise distort or deform the ring out of a circular shape.

What is claimed is:

1. In combination,

a ring having a substantially uniform inside diameter,

a bottom flange extending radially outwardly thereof and a top flange;

a. ring holder having an opening of a diameter equal to said inside diameter of said ring and a recess having an exactly circular axially extending wall slidably receiving said bottom flange of said ring to maintain the roundness of said ring; and

means on said ring holder overlying said bottom flange in said recess to hold said ring in said ring holder.

2. The combination of claim 1 wherein said means includes at least a pair of plates mounted symmetrically in said holder in overlying relation to said ring and means for securing said plates in said holder whereby said ring is maintained against removal from said holder.

3. The combination as set forth in claim 2 wherein said holder includes a pair of lappets, each said lappet having a recess receiving one of said plates therein, said plates being sized to lie within the plane of sai dlappets.

4. The combination as set forth in claim 1 which further includes a ring rail having an aperture and wherein said means includes at least a pair of holes in said ring rail and fastening means passing through said ring holder and each of said holes of said ring rail, said fastening means being smaller than said holes to permit lateral movement therein.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 795,476 7/1905 Belanger 57--1l9X 1,931,431 10/1933 Clocker et al. 57-l20 2,199,795 5/1940 Hofman 57122 2,452,323 10/1948 Platzer 57- 122X 2,588,193 3/1952 Albrecht 57120 FOREIGN PATENTS 957,584 5/ 1964 Great Britain 57-l19 STANLEY N. GILREATH, Primary Examiner W. H. SCI-IROEDER, Assistant Examiner 

